Clio 172 Cup info

[ST-EVO]

Having owned an Evo 6 for the last 2 years the time has come to downgrade to a cheaper alternative.

Having test driven pretty much every perfomance car within my price range only one car really stood out... The CLIO 172 CUP Few questions about them before i splash out on one.

1/ Are the non-ABS brakes up to the job in the wet/snow?

2/How do they perform on the track again CTRs & other performance hot hatchs?

3/Anyone got any idea about future depreciation of the Cup?

Cheers for your help!!

Regards

Steve

 

[KDF]

1) Yes, very good brakes on both the 172 and Cup

2) Very well, they do get a bit tail happy so be carefull though.

3) Shouldnt be too bad I would imagine. An initial loss from new (as with any car) then holding well.

[Edited by _KDF on 5/4/2004 4:41:52 PM]

 

[cupking]

Hi ST-EVO,

What other cars did you test drive? Ive got a Cup and in my opinion you cant go far wrong!! I went from the new Mini Cooper (not a performance car I know) which was fully loaded with extras and drove like a dream, and didnt think the cup would match it i.e nice to drive, but it did!!

1. Brakes are excellent! Theyre very responsive but be careful in the wet

2. I use to work at Brands Hatch and the Cup was a cut above compared to other cars in its class when Track Days were on

3. My Mini was better in terms or depreciation, but then again I cant see you getting rid of it that quick, plus one good thing is I believe there were around 2000 cups made (correct me if im wrong)

Hope this helps mate

Russ


[Edited by cupking on 04 May 2004 at 4:49pm]

 

[jabba]

im getting 32mpg at the mo and i aint shy, plus its tuned so more BLING!

 

[D-CUP]

ABS doesnt work properly in the snow anyway. Plus we hardly get much snow nowadays. I havent had a problem with the brakes, but they do lock easily.

The car is just itching to get on a track. I always feel like Im in a little race car whenever I find a nice smooth bit of Tarmac.

 

[ST-EVO]

What other cars did you test drive?

Civic Type R, 206 GTi 180 and a Mg Zr 160. Non of which came close to the 172 cup in terms of handling.

The car is just itching to get on a track. I always feel like Im in a little race car whenever I find a nice smooth bit of Tarmac.

I use to get this all the time with my Evo6 - after test driving a 172Cup i feel the need for more track days.

Is it worth uprating the brakes (4 pots) and suspension ( KW Coilovers) if the car is going to be used on trackdays??

 

[BossCup]

I went from an RB5 Scoob to a Cup and honestly would not swap back - unless I was given a lot of cash to mod the Scoob with..............maybe

The Cup is so similar in spirit to my old 106 GTI that I owned for 5 years and was sad to see go (to be replaced by the RB5) and all the right ingredients are there - not least the wonderful feedback through the controls.

I was concerned that the lack of ABS might prove an issue but in all honesty the brakes feel so good that I dont give it a second thought now, it also does not feel at all slow after the Scoob - probably more than anything due to its dimensions. The Scoob used to be quick but disguise it well and dare I suggest it was maybe even a little too refined. I am also pleasantly surprised at the induction noise, which I had not been expecting to be so tuneful. My only real gripe is the clutch though I am now getting used to it after having driven the car for a few weeks. Oh and almost forgot the great mpg too..

 

[clean16v]

depreciation on a cup? lol, check the for sale section mate..................

 

[Max172cup]

Hahaha, yeah i still get caught out by the clutch, tends to be when ive got music on and cant hear the revs, i still stall it on occaison even after 5 months!

The cup is a brilliant little car, and i love it to bits, like boss cup i used to have a 106 (was the S1 Rallye though) and the cup is like the big brother to it. Stripped out. It handles so well, and as yet ive never had a problem with the breaks, (touches wood) the times that theyve locked ive just released and reapplied a little less, never had any scares.

around town i get about 28mpg and motorways at about 85 i get 39-40ish, thats with a K&N and Scorpion system.

I didnt test drive much else as id always wanted a cup as i liked the idea of my Rallye being stripped out, so thought the Cup would be in the same vein. I am not dissapointed, and i hope neither will you!

Max

 

[Neil82]

Quote: Originally posted by clean16v on 04 May 2004

depreciation on a cup? lol, check the for sale section mate..................




Depreciation on a Cup isnt any worse than the majority of other new cars, you could buy an older car and spend hundreds keeping it on the road and invest hundreds/thousands in mods but you wont get any of that back when you come to sell it.....

 

[Moby]

in terms on handling feel - there isnt much that can come close to a cup for the money!

I went from a Cup to a 2004 Civic Type-R and the handling feel is drastically different - the cup is much better.

I agree with BossCup about the brakes, they dont really need ABS unless you are realling motoring hard on a slippy surface, which you shouldnt really be doing anyway

 

[cupking]

All I would say is be careful not to lift of when going round corners!! I know its common sense but its a drivers car and no traction to help you out! Get it you wont regret it!

 

[Eddd]

I had an Evo 6 Tommi Makinen. I have had a Ragnotti now for eight months. It is a great car and you will enjoy it immensely. The money you save in petrol alone will put a smile on your face.

My car lives on the Nurburgring and hasnt missed a beat yet! Knock on wood!

The Evo is in another league altogether, but so are the running costs!

Enjoy.

Ed

 

[CUP80Y]

You wont be dissappointed - its a superb car.

Little niggles youve probably heard about by now are just that, little inconsequential niggles that are far outweighed by the handling / driver involvement etc.....

The fuel economy is awesome too, you can actually afford to nail it absoloutely everywhere!!!!! I was getting 30 MPG as an average over thousands of miles, and im not kidding when I say - I booted it everywhere. Take it reasonably easy and boot it after every other roundabout and you can expect 35 + MPG!

 

[philip]

Quote: Originally posted by ST-EVO on 04 May 2004


1/ Are the non-ABS brakes up to the job in the wet/snow?

Yes, the brakes are progressive and give plenty of feedback. the cup racers use exactly the same brake system, apart from race pads (which I use) and the minor addition of a brake bias valve which you can do without on the normal car. with race brake fluid and th race pads, there is absolutely no fade at all after hard track use. You can also remove the cosmetic fogs and replace with air ducting.

2/How do they perform on the track again CTRs & other performance hot hatchs?

A standard cup has the same or better power to weight than any other hatch and in my view better handling capabilities. A slightly tweaked cup will push North of 200+bhp, and when you get there, you stop bothering with hatches on track and begin to chase better quality prey: elises, boxters and the odd bad/newbie/shy/blind (Lol) caterham driver

3/Anyone got any idea about future depreciation of the Cup?

Dont be such a tight fisted *** youre only spending 10Gs for heavens sake. Any car thatll give you nearly so much pleasure will lose that in one year! Cheers for your help!!

Regards

Steve

 

[Eddd]

Philip, What race pads are you using? Ive gone through a couple sets of DS3000 pretty quickly and have a set of DS3000 Endurance on order.

Did you duct your bakes? Is there a kit for this?

Good answer to the depreciation question!

Ed

 

[philip]

hi eddd. I am using performance friction 97 pads, same as the racers. Theyre stupendous but they grind the discs like hell - 0.7 friction coefficient ... mind you its a lot cheaper to change discs!

I have removed the fogs and I use the previous season ducts (not the 2003 ones that stick out). They are very easy to fit. You just unclip the black plastic surround of the fogs, put the duct in and clip back the plastic bit. I have tried using ducting all the way to the caliper/disc but it gets fouled up whenever you are at full lock manoeuvering in town etc, so for now I just run the front ducts as described. I will eventually move the horns and fuel vapour filter on teh other side and do a proper ducting job.

 

[BenS]

Hello,

Im using european clio cup spec grooved brake disks and performance friction pads on my Cup. The difference over standard is night and day. Fade and soggy pedal never happens however hard u abuse the brakes.

Combining this with rainsport tyres and my new suspension set up I can drive the car on the limit in the pouring rain and not suffer understeer or lock up of brakes.

 

[philip]

grooved discs for clio cup racer ???

which/info/part number?

how often do you change them?

 

[Eddd]

Are the ducts available from Dieppe?

How about the pads. Renault Competition or another source? Prices?

The DS 3000 have a decent Cof, and absolutely no fade, but just dont last. Ill try the Endurance ones and see how I get on.

I dont mind eating discs as I feel they are a consumeable much like the pads. How much for the Cup Spec grooved discs?

As I only have the Group N catalogue, I cant find the numbers for any of these items.

Sure would be good if Renault Sport could put their stuff on a website...

Ed


[Edited by Eddd on 05 May 2004 at 1:57pm]

 

[BenS]

Philip,

Have had them on since beginning of December and their doesnt seem to be much wear. I do hammer them all the time as they are so powerful. Youll be amazed how late u can brake in all weathers but the tyres will make a difference too.

Speak to Julian Griffin on 07977 583 999 and tell him u spoke to me. He will be busy at the moment due to clio cup races.

 

[philip]

Ben thanks for the info. Ed I get my pads and the ducts from one of the UK race teams who also do maintenance work on my car. PM me if interested. You should be able to get loads of ducts as they have been replaced with the ones that protrude from the bumper for the current series. I dont know if Renault sport sell them direct. From memory the pads cost about £120-130 which is the same as pagids, but way better performance. Are you running group N discs? any different from the standards? I find that mine deposit a lethal mix of brake dust and disc material on the front wheels, which makes them nearly impossible to clean. Ill probably have them repainted black soon )

 

[Eddd]

I just have the stock discs. Dont know what the difference is between them and the Grp N ones.

My wheels look like sh*te. They have had four sets of pads disintegrate behind them.

 

[philip]

I think the Grp N discs use nodular cast iron which is meant to have better heat dissipation etc. At the rate I go through mine, I may not bother. I know what you mean about the wheels , hee hee

 

[cup'id]

get one, you wont be dissapointed, handling is sweat (much sharper than my previous bmw mini cooper with uprated suspension). The engine accellerates very quickly and smoothley, sometimes faster than I can change gears (if im not concentrating ).

Brakes are very strong and have good feel. I have locked up once on the motorway when hammering it (car changing lanes in fornt of me) there was a puff of smoke but the car remained poised as ever and I steered easliy to avoid the other car.

mate has a 2004 ctr and it is v. nice. very plush inside (compared to cup) and does pull better at higher speeds. Tobe honest though because its a bit bigger and heavier it doesnt feel (as a passenger) to be quite as sharp, as when I was a passenger in my cup.

Havent been on track day yet, but will do soon because I love driving it so much and I dont want to drive wrecklesly on the roads.

 

[cupking]

cupid I went from a new mini cooper with the suspension plus to a Cup!! A person with good taste. The handling on the mini was supurb

 

[cup'id]

yeah the mini was a great car, I was v. sad to see it go. My mrs. had a mini one and she cried when she had to give it back to the dealer cuz of getting a company car - passat tdi. Cant get much different